OKLAHOMA CITY — Regardless of how the Women’s College World Series ends for Texas softball, this upcoming week will mark the end of Mia Scott’s playing career.
And not just with the Longhorns. The mercurial senior, who will go down as one of the best players in program history, doesn’t plan on pursuing a professional career, Texas coach Mike White revealed last week.
Scott had an offer from the Athletes Unlimited Softball League as one of the dozen players selected for the AUSL’s collegiate draft, and she could have pursued a lucrative career in an overseas league like in Japan.
“I wish she would play pro,” White said during the Longhorns’ super regional series against Clemson two weeks ago. “I wish she would go on and challenge herself at the next level, but it’s not something she wants to do at this point. I’m hoping that she misses it and she wants to come back and play, because she’s a special player.”
Mike White: All-American nod ‘well-deserved’ for Mia Scott
Scott, who hasn’t given any interviews during her four-year career, has not spoken publicly about her decision. There’s a good chance she will stay in Austin next school year, however; she’s in a relationship with Texas football running back CJ Baxter, a redshirt sophomore next season who stood alongside Scott during her Senior Day festivities at McCombs Field in May.
If the 2025 campaign does indeed mark the end of her competitive career, Scott saved the best for last. The four-time all-conference player earned her first All-American accolades from DI Softball and the National Fastpitch Coaches Association after hitting a career-high .443. She could still set career highs in runs and RBIs considering her 65 runs are just four short of her previous high and her 55 RBIs are just one shy of a career high.
The Longhorns will play Monday against either Tennessee or UCLA, and one win will get them into the WCWS championship series for a second consecutive season. Scott also made headlines by playing all nine positions in the regular-season finale against Kentucky.
“I’m glad she got the All-American nod this year,” White said. “It was well-deserved. I have seen her grow each and every year.”
White also joked about trying to increase her confidence in front of the cameras and recorders.
“I’m working on that,” he said. “She’s running out of time, I keep telling her. She’s just a kid that is self-conscious a little bit and is not as sure of herself in front of people.”
Mia Scott: Prolific stats across Texas record books
But her place in the Texas record books is assured. Scott tops the program’s list for most career runs with 249 and RBIs with 181, ranks second in career batting average at .399, ranks second in games played and in starts with 251 and ranks second in hits with 309.
This past week in Oklahoma City, Scott has done more with her glove than her bat. She’s had two hits in each of the Longhorns’ first two games but has yet to drive in a run. But she’s doing her part not to allow any runs, either; she had seven assists in the 3-0 win over Florida and three putouts in Saturday’s 4-2 win over Oklahoma. Her running over-the-head catch in foul territory of Oklahoma’s Abigale Dayton’s popup in the top of the sixth inning squelched a Sooners rally that had the tying run on third.
All those defensive plays come from a lot of work in practice, White said.
“Watching her day in and day out, it’s the same thing she does at practice,” he said. “She short-picks and takes tough hops and is not afraid to go get the ball. And for the most part, she’s really accurate with her throws as well. She’s able to not only play well defensively, but offensively. She’s one of the kids I want to have come up at the plate.”
And she’s also one of those kids that White will miss the most.
“What a great person she is,” he said. “She’s going to graduate with a degree (in youth and community studies) from a tough university, which is an accomplishment and something I take pride in as a coach, having players graduate with degrees.
“That’s what means the most. We may or may not win a national championship, but the feeling you get as a coach when you see someone grow like that, it’s awesome.”
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas softball: Mia Scott won’t seek a pro career after Women’s College World Series
Reporting by Thomas Jones, Austin American-Statesman / Austin American-Statesman
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
